MILAN — Ilia Malinin fell apart in real time.

The 21-year-old was the gold medal favorite entering 2026 Winter Olympics. He took a more than five-point lead into Friday’s free skate. But the self-proclaimed ‘Quad God’ had a disastrous performance, falling twice, bailing on two jumps that were meant to be quads and suffering an epic meltdown on the sport’s biggest stage.

‘I blew it,’ he said after. ‘That’s honestly the first thing that came to my mind, there’s no way that just happened. I was preparing the whole season, I felt so confident with my programs, so confident with everything. That happened, I have no words, honestly.’

Watch Ilia Malinin Olympics video on Peacock

Ilia Malinin free skate video

NBC broadcasts the Olympics and has replays of every event on TV, Peacock and the full video of Malinin’s routine is already on YouTube.

What happened to Ilia Malinin?

The 21-year-old scored a 156.33 in his disastrous free skate, finishing in eighth place with a total score of 264.49. It’s the first event he’s lost since November 2023, and the first time he didn’t finish in the top three at a competition since March 2022. He didn’t land a single quad Axel the entire competition.

‘I was not expecting that. I felt like going into this competition, I was so ready,’ Malinin said. ‘I just felt ready getting on the ice, … maybe I was too confident.

‘It honestly just happened. I can’t process what just happened. It happens.’

‘I think it was definitely mental. Just now experiencing that Olympic atmosphere, it’s crazy. It’s not like any other competition. It’s really different.’

‘I felt really good this whole day, going really solid, and I just thought that I all I needed to do was go out there and trust the process that I’ve always been doing with every competition,’ he said. ‘But of course, it’s not like any other competitions, it’s the Olympics.”

What Ilia Malinin said on hot mic

As Ilia Malinin sat in the Kiss-and-Cry section, waiting for his free skate score to be read out after his terrible performance at the 2026 Winter Olympics, he was caught on a hot mic talking about how things would have been different had he gone to the 2022 Beijing Games.

‘Beijing, I would not have skated like that,’ he was heard saying. Then, NBC commentator Johnny Weir told viewers what he said: That he would not have skated so terribly had he already had Olympic experience under his belt. 

Malinin could be heard saying: ‘It’s not easy.’ The 21-year-old was later asked about the comment.

‘I think if I went to ’22, then I would have had more experience and know how to handle this Olympic environment,’ he said. ‘But also, I don’t know what the next stages of my life would look like if I went there.’

Men’s singles figure skating results

1. Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan): 291.58 total score, 198.64 free skate, 92.94 short program.
2. Yuma Kagiyama (Japan): 280.06 total score, 176.99 free skate, 103.07 short program.
3. Shun Sato (Japan): 274.90 total score, 186.20 free skate, 88.70 short program.
4. Junhwan Cha (Korea): 273.92 total score, 181.20 free skate, 92.72 short program.
5. Stephen Gogolev (Canada): 273.79 total score, 186.37 free skate, 87.42 short program.
6. Petr Gumennik (Neutral Athlete): 271.21 total score, 184.49 free skate, 86.72 short program.
7. Adam Siao Him Fa (France): 269.27 total score, 166.72 free skate, 102.55 short program.
8. Ilia Malinin (United States): 264.49 total score, 156.33 free skate, 108.16 short program.
9. Daniel Grassl (Italy):263.71 total score, 170.25 free skate, 93.46 short program.
10. Nika Egadze (Georgia): 260.27 total score, 175.16 free skate, 85.11 short program.
11. Kevin Aymoz (France): 259.94 total score, 167.30 free skate, 92.64 short program.
12. Andrew Torgashev (United States): 259.06 total score, 170.12 free skate, 88.94 short program.
13. Kao Miura (Japan): 246.88 total score, 170.11 free skate, 76.77 short program.
14. Lukas Britschigi (Switzerland): 246.64 total score, 165.77 free skate, 80.87 short program.
15. Matteo Rizzo (Italy): 243.18 total score, 158.88 free skate, 84.30 short program.
16. Aleksandr Selevko (Estonia): 236.82 total score, 154.80 free skate, 82.02 short program.
17. Boyang Jin (China): 229.08 total score, 142.53 free skate, 86.55 short program.
18. Deniss Vasiljevs (Latvia): 226.46 total score, 144.02 free skate, 82.44 short program.
19. Kyrylo Marsak (Ukraine): 224.17 total score, 137.28 free skate, 86.89 short program.
20. Maxim Naumov (United States): 223.36 total score, 137.71 free skate, 85.65 short program.
21. Vladimir Samoilov (Poland): 222.25 total score, 144.68 free skate, 77.57 short program.
22. Donovan Carrillo (Mexico): 219.06 total score, 143.50 free skate, 75.56 short program.
23. Yu-Hsiang Li (Chinese Taipei): 214.33 total score, 141.92 free skate, 72.41 short program.
24. Adam Hagara (Slovakia): 202.38 total score, 122.08 free skate, 80.30 short program.

MILAN — An Olympic gold was in sight for the ‘Quad God.’ After his short program, something catastrophic would have had to happen for Ilia Malinin not to medal.

And that’s exactly what happened.

Malinin fell twice and did not fully complete other elements of his typically unbeatable routine, finishing the men’s singles event at the 2026 Winter Olympics with a total score of 264.49 for eighth place overall.

Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan) won the gold medal with a 291.58 total score, and Malinin congratulated him after. Silver and bronze went to a pair of skaters from Japan Yuma Kagiyama (280.06) and Shun Sato (274.90).

‘I blew it,’ Malinin said on the broadcast after the event. ‘That’s honestly the first thing that came to my mind, there’s no way that just happened. I was preparing the whole season, I felt so confident with my programs, so confident with everything. That happened. I have no words, honestly.’

Watch Ilia Malinin Olympics video on Peacock

The 21-year-old Malinin sat in first place — by a comfortable margin of five points — entering the free skate, but was among the many skaters who struggled to stay upright on the ice on Friday, Feb. 13 in Milan.

‘I felt really good this whole day, going really solid, and I just thought that I all I needed to do was go out there and trust the process that I’ve always been doing with every competition,’ he said. ‘But of course, it’s not like any other competitions, it’s the Olympics.”

What happened to Ilia Malinin?

The 21-year-old scored a 156.33 in his disastrous free skate, finishing in eighth place with a total score of 264.49. It’s the first event he’s lost since November 2023, and the first time he didn’t finish in the top three at a competition since March 2022. He didn’t land a single quad Axel the entire competition.

‘I was not expecting that. I felt like going into this competition, I was so ready,’ he said. ‘I just felt ready getting on the ice, but I think maybe that have been the reason that maybe I was too confident that I was (going to) go well. It honestly just happened. I can’t process what just happened. It happens.’

‘I think it was definitely mental. Just now experiencing that Olympic atmosphere, it’s crazy. It’s not like any other competition. It’s really different.’

Breaking down Ilia Malinin’s free skate, jump by jump

Here’s a breakdown of every element from Ilia Malinin’s free skate program, looking at what was planned and what actually happened.

Ilia Malinin free skate video

NBC broadcasts the Olympics and has replays of every event on TV, Peacock and the full video of Malinin’s routine is already on YouTube.

Ilia Malinin 8th place finish

Malinin finished in eight place finish in the men’s singles figure skating competition at the Olympics. It’s the first event he’s lost since November 2023, and the first time he didn’t finish in the top three at a competition since March 2022.

What Ilia Malinin said on hot mic

As Ilia Malinin sat in the Kiss-and-Cry section, waiting for his free skate score to be read out after his terrible performance at the 2026 Winter Olympics, he was caught on a hot mic talking about how things would have been different had he gone to the 2022 Beijing Games.

‘Beijing, I would not have skated like that,’ he was heard saying. Then, NBC commentator Johnny Weir told viewers what he said: That he would not have skated so terribly had he already had Olympic experience under his belt. 

Malinin could be heard saying: ‘It’s not easy.’ The 21-year-old was later asked about the comment.

‘I think if I went to ’22, then I would have had more experience and know how to handle this Olympic environment,’ he said. ‘But also, I don’t know what the next stages of my life would look like if I went there.’

Mikhail Shaidorov wins figure skating gold

Ilia Malinin congratulates Mikhail Shaidorov

Men’s singles figure skating results

1. Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan): 291.58 total score, 198.64 free skate, 92.94 short program.
2. Yuma Kagiyama (Japan): 280.06 total score, 176.99 free skate, 103.07 short program.
3. Shun Sato (Japan): 274.90 total score, 186.20 free skate, 88.70 short program.
4. Junhwan Cha (Korea): 273.92 total score, 181.20 free skate, 92.72 short program.
5. Stephen Gogolev (Canada): 273.79 total score, 186.37 free skate, 87.42 short program.
6. Petr Gumennik (Neutral Athlete): 271.21 total score, 184.49 free skate, 86.72 short program.
7. Adam Siao Him Fa (France): 269.27 total score, 166.72 free skate, 102.55 short program.
8. Ilia Malinin (United States): 264.49 total score, 156.33 free skate, 108.16 short program.
9. Daniel Grassl (Italy):263.71 total score, 170.25 free skate, 93.46 short program.
10. Nika Egadze (Georgia): 260.27 total score, 175.16 free skate, 85.11 short program.
11. Kevin Aymoz (France): 259.94 total score, 167.30 free skate, 92.64 short program.
12. Andrew Torgashev (United States): 259.06 total score, 170.12 free skate, 88.94 short program.
13. Kao Miura (Japan): 246.88 total score, 170.11 free skate, 76.77 short program.
14. Lukas Britschigi (Switzerland): 246.64 total score, 165.77 free skate, 80.87 short program.
15. Matteo Rizzo (Italy): 243.18 total score, 158.88 free skate, 84.30 short program.
16. Aleksandr Selevko (Estonia): 236.82 total score, 154.80 free skate, 82.02 short program.
17. Boyang Jin (China): 229.08 total score, 142.53 free skate, 86.55 short program.
18. Deniss Vasiljevs (Latvia): 226.46 total score, 144.02 free skate, 82.44 short program.
19. Kyrylo Marsak (Ukraine): 224.17 total score, 137.28 free skate, 86.89 short program.
20. Maxim Naumov (United States): 223.36 total score, 137.71 free skate, 85.65 short program.
21. Vladimir Samoilov (Poland): 222.25 total score, 144.68 free skate, 77.57 short program.
22. Donovan Carrillo (Mexico): 219.06 total score, 143.50 free skate, 75.56 short program.
23. Yu-Hsiang Li (Chinese Taipei): 214.33 total score, 141.92 free skate, 72.41 short program.
24. Adam Hagara (Slovakia): 202.38 total score, 122.08 free skate, 80.30 short program.

Simone Biles stops by figure skating

Eleven-time Olympic medalist and seven-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles stopped by the Milano Ice Skating Arena on Friday night to watch ‘Quad God’ Ilia Malinin and the rest of the men’s singles figure skaters compete for Olympic hardware.

Maxim Naumov’s free skate

Despite the mixed performance, the crowd shared its love for the skater. He even earned a standing ovation from actor Jeff Goldblum, who is in the crowd at Milano Ice Skating Arena. He again shared the photo of him as a child with his parents.

Here’s more about his backstory:

After Naumov finished in fourth place at the 2025 U.S. figure skating championships for the third straight year, his father, Vadim, wanted to game plan.

Vadim and Maxim’s mother, Evgenia Shishkova, were two-time Olympic pair skaters for Russia, and they knew Maxim’s upcoming year was critical with the 2026 Winter Olympics on the horizon.

A few days later, Vadim and Shishkova were among the 67 people killed in the midair collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and an Army helicopter near Washington, D.C. They were among the 28 figure skating coaches, young athletes and parents who were returning from a development camp. An unimaginable tragedy, and Naumov didn’t know if he could skate anymore.

Read the full story from reporter Jordan Mendoza.

Why is Ilia Malinin called the ‘Quad God’?

Simply put, Ilia Malinin has the greatest array of jumps any figure skater in history has ever possessed. He’s launched himself into the air for seven quadruple jumps in a single long program at last month’s Grand Prix Final and was the first skater to land a quad Axel.

Malinin’s username used to be Lutz God, but he changed it to Quad God after landing his first quad jump. 

“i didn’t think much about it … Days go by and people started asking, ‘Why’d you name yourself Quad God, you only landed one jump,’’ he said on Milan Magic, USA TODAY’s new Olympics podcast that drops its first episode Saturday. ‘And then I was like, ‘Oh, OK maybe I should be come a Quad God.’ From there I found my rhythm of landing quad after quad after quad and then of course landing the first quad axel.”

“In the most humble way possible, I think it’s definitely helped my confidence in not only to skating in general but just feeling like I deserve to be recognized as who I am.”

What makes Ilia Malinin so great? Skaters marveled by the ‘Quad God’

These are the few ways to describe Ilia Malinin, and none of them are an exaggeration. Every sport gets an athlete that redefines everything you know about it. Basketball had Michael Jordan. Football had Tom Brady. Baseball has Shohei Ohtani. 

Now, figure skating has its phenom, and it’s not just fans that are amazed by the 21-year-old. Those who have championed the sport and been through the grind are just as flabbergasted by how he’s turned figure skating upside down.

‘All the skaters that I sit with in the audience, they throw up their hands, and they think, ‘Oh, my God, this guy’s just so amazing,’” 1988 Olympic champion Brian Boitano said on USA TODAY’s Milan Magic podcast.

Now, the entire world has its chance to be the next spectators wowed at the 2026 Winter Olympics. It’s been a journey four years in the making, and in his Olympic debut, Malinin is out to show why he is the present and future of figure skating. 

He already did it in the team event, and now it’s time for him to do it in the men’s singles to become the next great American figure skating champion.

Figure skating Olympics schedule

Here is the remaining figure skating schedule in Milan. All times Eastern.

• Feb. 15, 1:45 p.m.: Pairs short program
• Feb. 16, 2 p.m.: Pairs free skate
• Feb. 17, 12:45 p.m.: Women’s short program
• Feb. 19, 1 p.m.: Women’s free skate

Ilia Malinin’s parents

Malinin was born into figure skating. His mother, Tatiana Malinina, is from the Soviet Union, Siberia specifically, and competed at 10 consecutive world figure skating championships for Uzbekistan. She finished eighth at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, the competition in which Tara Lipinski won the gold medal and Michelle Kwan the silver. Malinina finished fourth at the 1999 world championships as well, and she also competed at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, but withdrew after the short program with the flu.

Malinin’s father, Roman Skorniakov, represented Uzbekistan at the same two Olympics, 1998 and 2002, finishing 19th both times. He and Malinina were married in 2000 and became skating coaches in the United States, moving to the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., where, in December 2004, Ilia was born. He took the Russian masculine form of his mother’s last name because his parents were concerned that Skorniakov was too difficult to pronounce. 

Are backflips allowed in figure skating?

They are now. For nearly 50 years, the backflip was banned in figure skating, after American skater Terry Kubicka became the first one to execute it at the 1976 Innsbruck Games. French skater Surya Bonaly did it at the 1998 Winter Olympics, landing it on one blade, but the move was illegal and she was deducted for it. 

The International Skating Union reversed course and made the move legal in 2024, paving the way for it to be done at the 2026 Winter Olympics, 50 years after it was first done.

Ilia Malinin backflip

The ‘Quad God’ performed his first skate during the team event Saturday, Feb. 7, and he became the first skater since 1998 to perform a backflip at the Games, and the first since it was unbanned.

Malinin closed his performance with the stunning move than wowed the crowd at the Milano Ice Skating Arena. However, Malinin finished second in the event with a score of 98.00 after Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama pulled off a stunning routine that received 108.67 points.

Malinin then landed a backflip on one foot during his long program of the team event. Malinin was the first to pull off the one-foot move since French figure skater Surya Bonaly at the 1998 Nagano Winter Games. Bonaly landed it on one blade despite it being banned at the time and was deducted for it.

Quad axel in figure skating

Malinin is the only skater in history to achieve a quadruple axel in competition. That feat earned him the nickname ‘Quad God.’

What is a quad axel though? Here’s a full explanation of Malinin’s iconic move. A quadruple axel requires four-and-a-half rotations in order to complete. It’s so difficult, in fact, that it was once considered impossible to perform.

When did figure skating start in the Olympics?

Figure skating first made its Olympic debut at the Summer Games in London in 1908 and made another appearance in Antwerp in 1920, before becoming a Winter Olympic staple at the inaugural 1924 Chamonix Winter Games with men’s singles, women’s singles and pair skating events. Ice dancing was added to the program at the 1976 Innsbruck Winter Olympics, and the team event was first contested at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

How is figure skating scored?

A figure skating routine is made up of two scores: Technical elements score and program components score. The technical elements score is exactly what it sounds like: It’s for the jumps, spins and step sequences in a performance. The program components score is made of up composition, presentation and skating skills.

MILAN — Ilia Malinin didn’t perform a gold medal worthy program at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and the judges were well-aware of it.

The U.S. figure skating star had a catastrophic free dance Friday, Feb. 13, with several falls and bailed jumps resulting in an eighth place finish in the men’s singles, far from the expectation for the ‘Quad God.’

With the event complete, all nine judges’ scores have revealed the decisions that led to Malinin’s 156.33 free skate score, ranked 15th of the 24 skaters who remained in the competition. What’s notable about Malinin’s scores is even the United States judge didn’t give him the highest score.

Here is a breakdown of all the scores for Malinin:

Judge No. 1: Nadezhda Fiodorova (Georgia)

• Technical score: 75.93
• Component score: 80.76
• Total score: 154.69

Judge No. 2: Christine Blanc (Switzerland)

• Technical score: 75.82
• Component score: 79.09
• Total score: 152.91

Judge No. 3: Tiziana Morandi (Italy)

• Technical score: 79.40
• Component score: 84.93
• Total score: 162.33

Judge No. 4: Laila Davidsson (Sweden)

• Technical score: 73.80
• Component score: 84.09
• Total score: 155.89

Judge No. 5: Hailan Jiang (China)

• Technical score: 77.23
• Component score: 78.26
• Total score: 158.92

Judge No. 6: Kristina Lundgren (United States)

• Technical score: 78.50
• Component score: 82.42
• Total score: 158.92

Judge No. 7: Leanna Caron (Canada)

• Technical score: 74.90
• Component score: 78.26
• Total score: 151.16

Judge No. 8: Nadezhda Paretskaia (Kazakhstan)

• Technical score: 76.38
• Component score: 80.75
• Total score: 155.13

Judge No. 9: Yuri Kliushnikov (Azerbaijan)

• Technical score: 78.38
• Component score: 86.59
• Total score: 162.97

The Canadian men’s curling team closed out a successful 2-0 day at the 2026 Winter Olympics with a narrow win over Sweden.

But before a winner could be crowned in Cortina d’Ampezzo, there were tensions between the two teams.

Following the ninth end, Canada and Sweden broke out into a heated verbal confrontation on the ice at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium. The incident was sparked by Sweden’s Oskar Eriksson claiming Canada’s Marc Kennedy double-touched his rock after releasing it before the hog line.

‘Apparently it’s OK touching the rock after the hog line,’ Eriksson said while clearing the house, according to the Toronto Star. Per the Star, Eriksson’s comments were immediately answered by responses of ‘who?’ ‘I haven’t done it once’ and ‘Don’t chirp’ by Kennedy.

Canada closed out its 8-6 win over Sweden with a point in the 10th end, moving them to 3-0 in the round-robin standings.

The issue the Swedes had, according to Reuters, was that they thought Kennedy and Canada were making contact with the stone beyond the hog line, which is the line on the sheet of ice where curlers must let go of the curling stone during delivery.

World Curling has introduced electronic handles on the stones at the 2026 Winter Olympics, a technology piece that will tell officials if double-touching with the stone happened. Eriksson mentioned Sweden thought Kennedy was touching the stone and not the handle containing the sensor, which would not set off the red lights.

‘He asked who we thought was over the hog line and I pointed out who we thought was touching the rock,’ Eriksson said. ‘It was obviously not a red light, but some players are touching the rock, according to us. And that’s not allowed. … We told the officials. They came out and they misread the rules, sadly.

‘Because they thought double-touching any part of the rock is OK. And then they found out that was wrong. You can only touch the electronic part of the handle.’

Asked about the incident following the match, Kennedy said he didn’t like being accused of cheating.

‘It’s good. It’s (a) sport. It’s the Olympics. Both teams are trying to win,’ Kennedy said after the matchup, according to Reuters. ‘Oskar was accusing us of cheating. I didn’t like it. I’ve been curling professionally for 25 years.’

He later added: ‘There’s hog line devices on there. I don’t know. And he’s still accusing us of cheating. I didn’t like it. So I told him where to stick it.’

In a statement to Reuters, World Curling said that umpires had been set at the hog line to monitor deliveries for three ends after the issue was first raised during the game, but that there were ‘no hog line violations or retouches of the stone during the observation.’

Both teams return to action on Saturday, Feb. 14 for one game each. Canada takes on Switzerland at 8:05 a.m. ET, while Sweden takes on China at the same time.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

MILAN — Ilia Malinin fell apart in real time.

The 21-year-old was the gold medal favorite entering 2026 Winter Olympics. He took a more than five-point lead into Friday’s free skate. But the self-proclaimed ‘Quad God’ had a disastrous performance, falling twice, bailing on two jumps that were meant to be quads and suffering an epic meltdown on the sport’s biggest stage.

‘I blew it,’ he said after. ‘That’s honestly the first thing that came to my mind, there’s no way that just happened. I was preparing the whole season, I felt so confident with my programs, so confident with everything. That happened, I have no words, honestly.’

Watch Ilia Malinin Olympics video on Peacock

Ilia Malinin free skate video

NBC broadcasts the Olympics and has replays of every event on TV, Peacock and the full video of Malinin’s routine is already on YouTube.

What happened to Ilia Malinin?

The 21-year-old scored a 156.33 in his disastrous free skate, finishing in eighth place with a total score of 264.49. It’s the first event he’s lost since November 2023, and the first time he didn’t finish in the top three at a competition since March 2022. He didn’t land a single quad Axel the entire competition.

‘I was not expecting that. I felt like going into this competition, I was so ready,’ Malinin said. ‘I just felt ready getting on the ice, … maybe I was too confident.

‘It honestly just happened. I can’t process what just happened. It happens.’

‘I think it was definitely mental. Just now experiencing that Olympic atmosphere, it’s crazy. It’s not like any other competition. It’s really different.’

‘I felt really good this whole day, going really solid, and I just thought that I all I needed to do was go out there and trust the process that I’ve always been doing with every competition,’ he said. ‘But of course, it’s not like any other competitions, it’s the Olympics.”

What Ilia Malinin said on hot mic

As Ilia Malinin sat in the Kiss-and-Cry section, waiting for his free skate score to be read out after his terrible performance at the 2026 Winter Olympics, he was caught on a hot mic talking about how things would have been different had he gone to the 2022 Beijing Games.

‘Beijing, I would not have skated like that,’ he was heard saying. Then, NBC commentator Johnny Weir told viewers what he said: That he would not have skated so terribly had he already had Olympic experience under his belt. 

Malinin could be heard saying: ‘It’s not easy.’ The 21-year-old was later asked about the comment.

‘I think if I went to ’22, then I would have had more experience and know how to handle this Olympic environment,’ he said. ‘But also, I don’t know what the next stages of my life would look like if I went there.’

Men’s singles figure skating results

1. Mikhail Shaidorov (Kazakhstan): 291.58 total score, 198.64 free skate, 92.94 short program.
2. Yuma Kagiyama (Japan): 280.06 total score, 176.99 free skate, 103.07 short program.
3. Shun Sato (Japan): 274.90 total score, 186.20 free skate, 88.70 short program.
4. Junhwan Cha (Korea): 273.92 total score, 181.20 free skate, 92.72 short program.
5. Stephen Gogolev (Canada): 273.79 total score, 186.37 free skate, 87.42 short program.
6. Petr Gumennik (Neutral Athlete): 271.21 total score, 184.49 free skate, 86.72 short program.
7. Adam Siao Him Fa (France): 269.27 total score, 166.72 free skate, 102.55 short program.
8. Ilia Malinin (United States): 264.49 total score, 156.33 free skate, 108.16 short program.
9. Daniel Grassl (Italy):263.71 total score, 170.25 free skate, 93.46 short program.
10. Nika Egadze (Georgia): 260.27 total score, 175.16 free skate, 85.11 short program.
11. Kevin Aymoz (France): 259.94 total score, 167.30 free skate, 92.64 short program.
12. Andrew Torgashev (United States): 259.06 total score, 170.12 free skate, 88.94 short program.
13. Kao Miura (Japan): 246.88 total score, 170.11 free skate, 76.77 short program.
14. Lukas Britschigi (Switzerland): 246.64 total score, 165.77 free skate, 80.87 short program.
15. Matteo Rizzo (Italy): 243.18 total score, 158.88 free skate, 84.30 short program.
16. Aleksandr Selevko (Estonia): 236.82 total score, 154.80 free skate, 82.02 short program.
17. Boyang Jin (China): 229.08 total score, 142.53 free skate, 86.55 short program.
18. Deniss Vasiljevs (Latvia): 226.46 total score, 144.02 free skate, 82.44 short program.
19. Kyrylo Marsak (Ukraine): 224.17 total score, 137.28 free skate, 86.89 short program.
20. Maxim Naumov (United States): 223.36 total score, 137.71 free skate, 85.65 short program.
21. Vladimir Samoilov (Poland): 222.25 total score, 144.68 free skate, 77.57 short program.
22. Donovan Carrillo (Mexico): 219.06 total score, 143.50 free skate, 75.56 short program.
23. Yu-Hsiang Li (Chinese Taipei): 214.33 total score, 141.92 free skate, 72.41 short program.
24. Adam Hagara (Slovakia): 202.38 total score, 122.08 free skate, 80.30 short program.

This story will be updated.

MILAN — As Ilia Malinin sat in the Kiss-and-Cry section, waiting for his free skate score to be read out after his terrible performance at the 2026 Winter Olympics, he was caught on a hot mic talking about how things would have been different had he gone to the 2022 Beijing Games.

‘Beijing, I would not have skated like that,’ he was heard saying. Then, NBC commentator Johnny Weir told viewers what he said: That he would not have skated so terribly had he already had Olympic experience under his belt. 

Malinin could be heard saying: ‘It’s not easy.’ The 21-year-old was later asked about the comment.

‘I think if I went to ’22, then I would have had more experience and know how to handle this Olympic environment,’ he said. ‘But also, I don’t know what the next stages of my life would look like if I went there.’

‘I felt really good this whole day, going really solid, and I just thought that I all I needed to do was go out there and trust the process that I’ve always been doing with every competition,’ he said. ‘But of course, it’s not like any other competitions, it’s the Olympics.”

The 21-year-old was the gold medal favorite entering 2026 Winter Olympics. He took a more than five-point lead into Friday’s free skate. But the self-proclaimed ‘Quad God’ had a disastrous performance, falling twice, bailing on two jumps that were meant to be quads and suffering an epic meltdown on the sport’s biggest stage.

‘I blew it,’ he said after. ‘That’s honestly the first thing that came to my mind, there’s no way that just happened. I was preparing the whole season, I felt so confident with my programs, so confident with everything. That happened, I have no words, honestly.’

‘I was not expecting that. I felt like going into this competition, I was so ready,’ Malinin said. ‘I just felt ready getting on the ice, … maybe I was too confident.

‘It honestly just happened. I can’t process what just happened. It happens.’

Get our Chasing Gold Olympics newsletter in your inbox for coverage of your favorite Team USA athletes

PHOENIX — Fans lined up and raced around the back fields at the Los Angeles Dodgers spring-training complex Friday, shrieking at the sight of him.

Photographers lugged their equipment around the complex, scurrying to see where he was going to go next.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts spent his media session talking about him more than anyone.

It was Day 1 of the Dodgers spring training camp, and once again, all the buzz was about Shohei Ohtani.

When will he pitch in spring training? When is he leaving for the World Baseball Classic? Are you sure he won’t pitch in the WBC? How can he prepare to pitch while he’s with Team Japan for three weeks? Will he continue to bat leadoff on the days he starts for the Dodgers? How often will he pitch this season? Is he the opening day starter?

So many questions, so few answers.

Yep, just like ol’ times.

The difference this year is that there will be no limitations on Ohtani. He is fully healthy after undergoing two Tommy John surgeries. He had a completely normal offseason where he was able to pitch, as well as hit. And he feels as strong as he ever has in his spectacular career.

“I think it’s fair to say he expects to be in the Cy Young conversation,’’ Roberts said, “but we just want him to be healthy, make starts, and all of the numbers and statistics will take care of themselves. But man, this guy is such a disciplined worker and expects the most from himself. …

“Regardless of my expectations for him, his are going to exceed those.’’

Yes, when you’re the winner of four unanimous MVP awards − including three in a row − win two World Series championships, and are the only player to hit 50 homers and steal 50 bases in the same season, why not try to check off the final box on the Hall of Fame resume?

Cy Young award, anyone?

“If the end result is getting a Cy Young, that’s great,’’ Ohtani said. “Getting a Cy Young means being able to throw more innings and being able to pitch throughout the whole season. So, if that’s the end result, that’s a good sign for me. What I’m more focused on is just being healthy the whole year.’’

Ohtani, 31, began pitching in games again last June, for the first time in 22 months. He pitched just 47 innings, yielding a 2.87 ERA, but not only was his 100-mph velocity back, so was his control, striking out 62 batters with nine walks.

And while he was coming back from his second Tommy John surgery in September 2023, and shoulder surgery in November 2024, he still hit 55 homers with 102 RBI, leading the National League with 146 runs with a slash line of .282/.392/.622.

“I think the thing that was most surprising was his command,’’ Roberts said, “and I’ll say that he still feels his command wasn’t up to par. But given the Tommy John (surgery) and what typically command looks like the year after … it was impressive. Just his ability to command the couple of different breaking balls, to change the shape of his breaking balls, was pretty impressive. Everything he does is with a purpose.

“So, I’m really excited to see with the full offseason to just prepare and not rehab, what he can do this year. … When you’re in rehab mode, it’s a little bit of survival going into the season as opposed to just going into a regular offseason preparing for the next season and not in the rebab mode.

“We’ll see what it looks like, but I’m pretty encouraged on both sides of the baseball.’’

Ohtanti concedes he felt fatigue as a two-way player in the playoffs for the first time. He hit eight homers with 14 RBI as the Dodgers’ DH, and pitched 20.1 innings in the postseason, yielding a 7.56 ERA in his two World Series starts.

“It was a really good experience overall, but being able to go deeper into the season as a two-way player,’’ Ohtani said, “I did feel the effect of it.’’

The Dodgers, wanting to keep Ohtani as fresh as possible, along with the rest of their rotation, tentatively are planning on a six-man rotation to at least start the season.

“How beholden we are to that, for how long, I don’t know,’’ Roberts said. “But I think it’s easy to say that because the early part of the season we’re very mindful of giving guys rest to keep guys built up. I think that lends itself to that.’’

Yet, even with the short offseason, even being a two-way player the second half of the season, Ohtani feels as fresh and strong entering spring than at any time in his eight-year career. He has already thrown three bullpen sessions since coming to Arizona two weeks ago, and plans to face batters for the first time next week.

“I was finally able to have a normal offseason,’’ Ohtani said. “Although the offseason was pretty short, I thought it was a good thing actually to have a shorter offseason.’’

Yes indeed, short offseasons mean long postseason runs, and the Dodgers are coming off two World Series titles with dreams of making it a three-peat.

And after watching Ohtani perform in camp, well, the Dodgers know just the man who can lead them back to the promised land.

“He looks strong,’’ Roberts said. “Just watching him throw, watching him run, his body moving well, I think he’s in a sweet spot.’’

Another magical season awaits.

Follow Nightengale on X: @BNightengale

MILAN — The U.S. women’s hockey team is headed to the semifinals and are now two wins away from winning their first Olympic gold medal since 2018.

Veteran forward Kendall Coyne Schofield led the way with back-to-back goals in the USA’s 6-0 shutout of Italy Friday, Feb. 13 in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Winter Olympics. Megan Keller, Laila Edwards, Britta Curl (short-handed) and Hannah Bilka also scored in the blowout victory, while Caroline Harvey recorded two assists to bring her to nine points on the tournament.

‘It’s a special group,’ said Coyne Schofield, a four-time Olympian. ‘I’ve been on a lot of teams throughout my career, but there is something special about this one. … Everyone is willing to do whatever it takes to be the best that they can be for this team, no matter what the role is and what or what’s asked of us, everyone’s dialed in and ready to go and ready to do whatever it is.’

U.S. head coach John Wroblewski said his team’s ‘offense is the best defense.’ Team USA held the Italians to six shots on goal the entire match, compared to its 51. They’ve recorded four consecutive shutouts with balanced scoring from the entire team and depth in the net with goalkeepers Aerin Frankel and Gwyneth Philips.

Fifteen American s have scored at least one point through five games. The U.S. women lead all teams in scoring with 26 total goals and have only conceded one goal the entire tournament (a 5-1 win over Czechia Feb. 5).

Five-time Olympian Hilary Knight was held without a point and is one goal and one point away from setting the all-time U.S. Olympic records in those categories.

USA TODAY was in Milan and provided live updates from the USA vs. Italy quarterfinal. Here are the highlights:

Watch Winter Olympics on Peacock

Who’s next for USA in semifinals?

The semifinals are reseeded so the top-seeded USA won’t know its opponent until after Saturday’s games.

Final score: USA 6, Italy 0

The USA picked up its fourth consecutive shutout in a dominant performance against Italy. They scored five goals in the second period.

One minute left

6-0 USA.

USA power play

Nadia Mattivi is called for an illegal hit. Hilary Knight is out there on the power play, setting up near the front or side of the net as she looks for a U.S. record. Italy kills the penalty.

USA power play

Kristen Guerriero is called for cross-checking. Hilary Knight is out there. She’s stopped on a rebound as teammates try to set her up. Now Knight has gone to the bench.

Midway through third period

Still 6-0 USA.

Hilary Knight chance

Hilary Knight gets a nice shot off against Gabriella Durante, but the goalie makes the save and holds on. 6-0 USA.

Third period underway

USA is up 6-0 and 20 minutes away from heading to the semifinals.

End of second period: USA 6, Italy 0

The USA dominated in the first period but could get only one puck past Gabriella Durante. They solved that in the second period with five goals. Kendall Coyne Schofield led the way with her first two goals of the 2026 Olympics. Laila Edwards, Britta Curl-Salemme (short-handed) and Hannah Bilka also scored and the game is getting chippy. Shots are 39-4 through two periods as Italy went 25 minutes without a shot.

USA goal: Hannah Bilka scores

Hannah Bilka extended Team USA’s lead to 6-0 over the Italians. Caroline Harvey picked up her second assist of the game. She leads the 2026 Games in points (9) and assists (7). Taylor Heise also picked up an assist on the goal. USA 6, Italy 0

Italy power play

Things are starting to get chippy between the USA and Italy. American Joy Dunne and Italian Franziska Stocker exchanged some words with each other after a hard hit and the two began pushing each other as the play continued on. Cayla Barnes was called for interference at the 15:19 mark to end a chaotic sequence. The crowd booed when Barnes was called for the penalty. Italy hits the crossbar. The USA kills the penalty.

Italy shot drought ends

Italy gets its first shot in 25 minutes.

USA goal: Britta Curl-Salemme scores short-handed

The U.S. women’s hockey team was at a disadvantage after Rory Guilday was called for a penalty for boarding. That didn’t stop the Americans from scoring a shorthanded goal. Britta Curl-Salemme came around the back of the net to score Team USA’s fifth goal of the quarterfinal match. Joy Dunne earned the assist. USA 5, Italy 0

Italy power play

Rory Guilday is called for boarding. The USA scores short-handed to make it 5-0.

Alex Carpenter injury update

Alex Carpenter is back on the ice. She slammed her stick in frustration after being checked earlier in the period.

USA goal: Laila Edwards scores

Laila Edwards has her second goal in as many games. Edwards fired a long-range shot to give the Americans their third goal in the second period with over 15 minutes left to play. Megan Keller and Tessa Janecke were credited with assists. USA 4, Italy 0

USA goal: Kendall Coyne Schofield scores again

Kendall Coyne Schofield is having herself a night. She followed up her first goal of the 2026 Winter Olympics with her second goal a little more than three minutes later. Britta Curl and Grace Zumwinkle were credited with the assists. USA 3, Italy 0

USA goal: Kendall Coyne Schofield adds to lead

Kendall Coyne Schofield has her first goal of the 2026 Winter Olympics. Coyne Schofield snuck the puck past Italian goalkeeper Gabriella Durante to give Team USA a 2-0 lead at the 1:41 mark of the second period. Caroline Harvey and Haley Winn were credited with the assists. Harvey is up to six assists on the tournament. USA 2, Italy 0

Second period underway

1-0 USA.

Sweden vs. Czechia score: Sweden wins

In the earlier game, Sweden advanced to the semifinals with a 2-0 win against Czechia. Hilda Svensson had a goal and an assist. Ebba Svensson Traff had a 29-save shutout.

End of first period: USA 1, Italy 0

Megan Keller scored the Americans lone goal at the 13:31 mark and goalkeeper Gwyneth Philips has kept the Italians off the board so far with a pair of saves. Italy’s Gabriella Durante has made some big saves. Team USA is outshooting the Italians 20-2.

Abbey Murphy robbed

Italy goalie Gabriella Durante reaches over to get her stick on an Abbey Murphy shot and deny her a goal. Durante also stopped Murphy twice at the end of and right after the USA power play.

Crowd getting into it

Simultaneous chants of ‘Italia’ and ‘USA’ going on.

USA goal: Megan Keller opens scoring for USA

Team USA is the first on the board after Megan Keller found the back of the net on a power play. Keller received the puck from Alex Carpenter and passed it to Laila Edwards, who immediately passed it back to an open Keller. Keller then shot a laser to give the Americans a 1-0 lead in the quarterfinal. USA 1, Italy 0

Italy power play

USA goalie Gwyneth Philips is called for delay of game for playing the puck in the restricted area. Italy power play ends when Laura Lobis is called for boarding. It will be 4-on-4.

Gwyneth Philips save

USA is dominating jn shots, but American goalie Gwyneth Philips comes up big on a breakaway by Justine Reyes.

USA power play

Nadia Mattivi is called for an illegal hit. USA gets three shots. Italy kills penalty.

Game underway

USA’s Gwyneth Philips vs. Italy’s Gabriella Durante in net.

What time is USA women’s hockey vs. Italy today?

• Date: Friday, Feb. 13
• Time: 3:10 p.m. ET
• Location: Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena

Puck drop between the U.S. women’s hockey team and Switzerland is set for 3:10 p.m. ET on Friday, Feb. 13 from Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena in Milan.

Where to watch US women’s hockey vs. Italy at Olympics

• TV channel: USA Network
• Streaming options: NBCOlympics.com | NBC Olympic App | Peacock

USA Network will broadcast Friday’s U.S. women’s hockey quarterfinal matchup against Italy at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Streaming options for the game include NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Olympic App (with a TV login).

You can also stream the game on Peacock, NBC’s subscription streaming service.

USA women’s hockey roster for 2026 Winter Olympics

Here is the full U.S. women’s hockey roster for the Milano Cortina Olympics:

• Forwards: Kirsten Simms; Kelly Pannek; Grace Zumwinkle; Hayley Scamurra; Britta Curl-Salemme; Hilary Knight; Tessa Janecke; Hannah Bilka; Joy Dunne; Alex Carpenter; Kendall Coyne Schofield; Taylor Heise; Abbey Murphy.
• Goaltenders: Ava McNaughton; Aerin Frankel; Gwyneth Philips.
• Defenders: Lee Stecklein; Cayla Barnes; Caroline Harvey; Megan Keller; Rory Guilday; Haley Winn; Laila Edwards.

Gwyneth Philips starts in net for USA

Aerin Frankel has started three games for Team USA, but head coach John Wroblewski is turning to his backup. Gwyneth Philips is starting in the net for Team USA. Philips combined with McNaughton for a 5-0 shutout of Switzerland on Monday.

USA’s lines vs Italy

The USA will stick with the same top two lines as in the Canada game. Hannah Bilka was moved to the second line for that game and scored two goals.

Hilary Knight tied for two U.S. records

Hilary Knight enters the game tied for the U.S. Olympic record for career goals and points. Her 14 goals are tied with Natalie Darwitz and Katie King. Her 32 points are tied with Jenny Potter.

USA vs Italy women’s hockey predictions

• Mike Brehm: USA 7, Italy 0. ‘The Americans have five goals in each game in the tougher Group A. Italy is not as strong as those teams.’
• Jace Evans: USA 6, Italy 1. ‘The Americans have been rolling at these Olympics and they’ll keep it up here.’
• Cydney Henderson: USA 4, Italy 1. ‘Five appears to be the lucky number, but I’m going to go 4-1. Italy will feed off the home crowd and keep it close before the Americans open it up.’
• Helene St James: USA 7, Italy 1. ‘The American women are a dominant, seemingly unstoppable force. Host Italy’s biggest asset will be all the home country fans – they’ve provided a great atmosphere at every hockey venue. Should help boost the Italians as the U.S. women look poised to rout.’

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.